Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee; because he trusteth in thee. Trust ye in the LORD for ever: for in LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength.– Isaiah 26:3-4
One of the great needs in life is to realize that there are things and people that we cannot change or control. Often we have to live with these as they are–and we don’t like it. “It shouldn’t be this way”, we argue. Sometimes we feel like “pitching a fit”, or going to the other extreme and pouting. We want our displeasure to be known, and we usually put it on display. Sadly, that usually makes things worse, rather than better. To be at peace we must learn to work with people as they are, not as we wish they were or as they ought to be. We must love people unconditional, not because they live up to our expectations. That, however, isn’t appealing to our fleshly nature. We want to debate the issue.
Our argument goes something like this–“How can I be at peace when there are so many problems? How can I be happy when there are so many hardships? How can you expect me to be content under these circumstances?
But, then, another question arises out of these–“Is it reasonable to expect peace and happiness when things are as they are? In other words, we feel we have a right to be displeased, depressed, discouraged, and difficult. Do we?
Well, you can argue all you want, but the answer is “yes it is reasonable” to expect peace and happiness. It is not only reasonable, it is our responsibility! We are obligated to manifest the fruit of the Spirit. And since it is our duty, it is possible. God’s grace always provides what His Word demands. The solution to our problem is found in these word, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee; because he trusteth in thee.”( Isaiah 26:3). I confess that I don’t always have perfect peace, as I should, but that is my fault– not a failure on God’s part. Regardless of my circumstances, I am obligated to be joyful and content. Nothing excuses me from that responsibility.
If, like me, you often fail at this, I encourage you to carefully study every word in this verse and every related verse (such as Heb. 12:1-3 and 2 Cor. 4:8-18). I promise you, it will make a difference! By keeping our mind “stayed” upon the Lord we can have “perfect peace”. Think about it!
